A DUCK SHAPED MUSIC BOX THAT PLAYS SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN IS PLACED ATOP A GLASS OF FLAT CHAMPAGNE BY AN INDIVIDUAL WHO HAS TUNED SAID GLASS TO E-FLAT; THE GLASS IS THEN POSITIONED LEVEL ATOP 3 BIRCH LOGS THAT HAVE BEEN BOUND TOGETHER WITH THREE INDUSTRIAL RUBBER BANDS.

there is a bold, heroic sound within silenceall manner of insects in symphonythe rushing of water over rocksan entire limb of leavestapping one against all othersas the rain exerts its force upon them

soon the droplets will cascade downfrom the topto the bottom layers of leavesand then onto a supine me

perhaps even beforeI finish writing this

“a heroic key, extremely majestic, grave and serious: in all these features it is superior to that of C.” - Francesco Galeazzi on E-flat

the silent sounds I hearnot frequently enoughare born of being alonea feeling of being with my selfbut never alonebut always gravebut always serious

I write to you in these clumsy titlesI confide in youI beg of you with these writingsbecause the spoken words are far too combustiblein the last sunlightwhile you are merely feet away

“The intent is earnest (Fredrikson Stallard want us to regard the table as merely a bundle of logs), yet doubts its own earnestness (it is clearly more than just raw timber). The table is an example of self-conscious inauthenticity, used to critique something beyond itself, in this case, our sophisticated expectation of pastoral simplicity.” - Gareth Williams on Fredrikson Stallard’s Table #2

across the night pasturethe dusk lightthe latest evening lightlast light of the day

illuminates not the white birch treeson the edge of the forestand not the trees behind themit is the drenched canopy thatcomprises that third layer back

it shimmers in thatlate late yellowfrom top to three quarters to almost mid-way

impossibly against the backgroundof much darker, generally same colored leaves

“Thus the ultimate nostalgic source text is itself a pomo homage to a lost moment. Kelly and Charisse’s ballet redefines the meta-physical, shimmering surreally at multiple removes of time and space. Even the camera keeps a stricken distance; get too close and this might disappear. The entire film is an optical effect of the memory. Those puddles are a mirage.” - Jessica Winter on Singin’ in the Rain

“Man is not merely the sum of his masks. Behind the shifting face of personality is a hard nugget of self, a genetic gift.... The self is malleable but elastic, snapping back to its original shape like a rubber band. Mental illness is no myth, as some have claimed. It is a disturbance in our sense of possession of a stable inner self that survives its personae.” - Camille Paglia on the self

discussions of children to comeone toast too lateabout children to cometoo lateas our journey back is just beyond

one I only intend to partake in bodyas I will close my self up here with1. the teak adirondack chairs2. the outdoor dining set3. the rope hammock4. the rest of the house

here lying motionlessone eye opentracing the shape of the silhouetted birds with my penthey read black on pale bluevvvvvvvvv across the paper sky

they read as I sound when an honest observation has fast-tracked its way to my lips and my brain has thought better a moment after the word has begun to escape and recognizing the mechanism and knowing it to be directed at my self I simply finish their indictment scrawling vvvvvvvvvagrant on the page now lost in the dark mess

I am reminded thatmany species of duck are flightless while moultingand that this moult typically precedes migration